Italian motorway gas stations set for long strike

15/07/2013

Associations bemoan high prices imposed by petrol companies

Rome, July 15 - Italian freeway gas stations are
set to go on a long strike late on Tuesday that will run until
early on Friday.
Service-station industry associations called the protest,
which will see motorway service stations lock their pumps from
22:00 on Tuesday to 6:00 on Friday, against the prices set by
the petrol companies.
Gas prices were upped by many companies on Monday, the
latest in a series of hikes.
The Quotidiano Energia journal reported that the national
average for unleaded petrol was now up to 1.836 euros a litre
and 1.739 euros for diesel.
The associations said Monday that they were pressing ahead
with the strike as the government had been "indifferent" to
their appeals about the prices set by the petrol companies.
Industry Ministry Flavio Zanonato called on the petrol
companies to "take account of the situation of the country",
which is enduring its longest recession since World War II, with
their pricing policies.
But the minister also said the hikes were "prevalently"
caused by increases in crude-oil prices and in demand and said
the differences between prices at the petrol pump in Italy and
other European countries were "minimal".
Service-station associations and consumer groups have
frequently complained that the companies set much higher prices
in Italy than elsewhere in Europe.
The national authority regulating strikes will hold talks
with the service-station associations and the major petrol
companies operating in Italy, Eni, Shell, Q8, Api, Tamoil,
TotalErg, Esso, on Wednesday in a bid to revive negotiations.